Today, Nigerian-American singer Jidenna has been the centre of unflattering comments and jabs from Nigerians over his statements about Nigeria in a recent TV interview.
Jidenna who is popularly known for his collaboration, "Yoga" with American singer, Janelle Monae , was born to an American mother and a Nigerian father from the Easter part of Nigeria, majorly termed as ‘Igbos’.
In his interview with VladTV, Jidenna was asked about how he deals with the issues of being a light-skinned African American and he went on to refer to himself as an “Igbo American” and that, being lightskinned put you at a bigger risk in Nigeria.
Watch Jidenna’s Full Interview Below
He described his Nigeria home base in the South-East as being “away from the city”, and was quoted saying "When I went to bury my father, I had to bring a lot of AK-47s… I had to employ military commandos… Because when you’re light-skinned, you’re a heavier target for being kidnapped, because you’re seen as more valuable.”
He added that his family had been assaulted and robbed at different times but that being lightskinned people in America is much easier.
Within hours of the interview's release, an uproar blew out within the Nigerian Twittersphere with Jidenna's name trending endlessly as Nigerians expressed their anger at his ignorant remarks about the kidnapping situtation in Nigeria, which is a common issue across the world and isn't tied to a particular race or skin color.
Many Nigerian artistes including Don Jazzy, Wale, Nikki Laoye, Jaywon, Skales, DJ Xclusive spoke out regarding this situation but Jaywon and Skales got twitter slaps from Nigerians who felt their comments were out of line.
Lol.. Which side are the tweeps really on?
Check out some of the tweets yourself by following the trend: Jidenna
His instagram account has also been bombarded by angry Nigerians.
His instagram account has also been bombarded by angry Nigerians.
Below are the comments made by the Nigerian artistes
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